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With summer vacations now behind us and the biggest season of all just ahead – football season – it’s a good time to think about donating blood.

During the summer, when school is out and student numbers drop on university campuses, the blood supply takes an annual dip as well. Now, with students back and vacations over, donors are needed to rebuild the community blood supply.

Ask Bronson Volunteer Fire Department Captain Jerry Horton why the program he helped pioneer, the Levy County Fire Academy, is growing in popularity, and he’ll tell you it’s because of the quality of the instructors. “If it wasn’t for the instructors, it wouldn’t be what it is today,” he said Thursday. The program, given its official name this year, has steadily grown since it was started about five years ago and is being looked at by the Florida State Fire College, in Ocala, as a potential partner in providing more advanced t

The Suwannee River Water Management District commends Anderson Columbia Co., Inc., and Strickland Field Limited Partnership for a10-year commitment to water resource protection. The District purchased development rights on a 3,822-acre parcel owned by Anderson Columbia and Strickland Field Limited Partnership for $2.3 million 10 years ago. Under the terms of the conservation easement, landowners of the property have agreed to keep the property in its current natural state. The agreement restricts harvesting or alteration of forested wetlands.

Tri-County Ducks Unlimited is having their annual banquet on Thursday, Aug. 19, at The Gilchrist Club in Trenton. The doors open at 6 p.m. with cocktails and social from 6 to 7 p.m. and dinner at 7:15 p.m. The auction starts at 8 p.m. Seating is limited to only 50 tickets which are sold on a first-come, first-serve basis. Tickets are usually not available at the door. For reservations or more information, please contact Michael E.

Data collection specialists with the Suwannee River Water Management District spend long hours installing, maintaining and collecting data from gages along our rivers, lakes, and streams, but they can’t do it without the help of a few volunteers that supplement their efforts. More than 30 volunteer observers help collect rainfall and water-level data from manual gages within the District’s 15-county region.

Another Way, Inc., which operates a shelter and life skills center for victims of domestic violence and rape in Chiefland, has received a grant from Walmart Foundation for $60,000 to support the continuation of its Economic Empowerment Program. The non-profit agency which serves Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy and Suwannee counties had been facing an end of funding for the program by another foundation when the Walmart Foundation came through with the grant. Donna Fagan, executive director of Another Way, said the agency serves about 900 to

In these tough economic times, more people are looking for different ways to enjoy the outdoors.

Birding is one outdoor activity that is increasing in popularity, and Levy County has a plethora of sites to view and enjoy the unique aspects of Florida birdwatching.

To help get people started with the new hobby, the College of Central Florida is offering a Birding Basics course Friday, Aug. 20 at the Levy Center in Chiefland. The class is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the cost is $15 per person.

The Medicare Savings Program, a new Program for the state Department of Elder Affairs and Elder Options of Gainesville, is trying to find Medicare beneficiaries to qualify for help in paying their Medicare Part D Drug Plan costs (Extra Help/LIS) and/or to have their Medicare Part B Premium ($96.40 or $110.50) paid.

To qualify for Part D assistance, an individual must have income and assets as follows:

The Social Security Stories Project is seeking stories from individuals about the importance and impact of Social Security in their lives, with a goal of receiving 1,000 stories by the end of July.

The submitted stories will be reviewed for possible inclusion in a new book to be published in honor of the 75th anniversary of Social Security on Aug. 14, 2010.

There are 10 stories featured in a new video that can be viewed on YouTube. The video uses photos submitted by the story tellers, as well as audio captured through a special toll-free number set up for the project.

Cities (San Francisco, U.S.A.; Mumbai, India) and even countries around the world (Ireland, Switzerland, and believe it or not, China) are beginning to ban or heavily tax single use plastic bags (the flimsy ones we get at the grocery store). Why?

Because plastic bags are made from petroleum (oil) and somewhere between 500 billion and a trillion bags are produced worldwide annually – another example of our dependence on oil.

Airheads from all over the state converged on a 45-acre farm located between Cedar Key and Chiefland last weekend for the Second Annual Suwannee River Tech Day and Camp.

The international Airheads Beemer Club is for riders who own specific BMW bikes: those with air-cooled engines. Most anything that happens with an Airhead Beemer can be repaired on the side of the road with the tool kit that BMW provides – with the right knowledge, of course.